Chapter 3Individual Views of

Delinquency: Choice and Trait

What’s new?

Grades and Grading Comments

Questions and Concerns

Chapter Goals

General context of individual views of delinquency

Be familiar with and distinguish between the two branches of individual-level theories of delinquency

Know the principles of choice theory Discuss the routine activities theory of delinquency Know the principles of general deterrence theory Discuss the concept of general deterrence theory Trace the history and development of trait theory Be familiar with the branches and substance of

biological trait theory

Scientific Method

Scientific Method Hypothesis - guess Experimentation – trials Data – collecting results Theory

Educated guess Effort to explain or make sense of data Foundation of criminology and the basis of

action – everything done in criminology is based on this

Doesn’t apply to Everyone!

Choice Theory

Philosophers formed the Core of Rational Choice Theory

Choice Theory holds that the decision to violate the law comes after a careful weighing of the benefits

Delinquents choose to commit crime because they find violating the law attractive…

The Rational Delinquent

The view that delinquents choose to violate the law remains a popular approach to the study of delinquents

In reality, many youths from affluent families choose to break the law

Delinquent motives include: Economic need/opportunity Problem solving False expectations Opportunity

Routine Activities Theory

Developed by Lawrence Cohen and Marcus Felson

The view that crime is a normal function of the routine activities of modern living

To have a crime, a motivated offender must come to the same place as an attractive target.

Choice Theory and Delinquency Prevention

General Deterrence Crime control policies that depend on the fear of

criminal penalties, i.e long prison sentences for violent crime

Specific Deterrence Sending convicted offenders to secure incarceration

facilities so that punishment is severe enough to convince them not to repeat their criminal activity

Choice theory helps us understand criminal events

and victim patterns

Poll

Poll – Juvi 2, Poll 1, 2, 3

Do you think that people who commit crime are physically or mentally abnormal?

Is there a link between sugar and antisocial behavior?

Is there a link between hormones and antisocial behavior?

Trait Theories: Biosocial and Psychological Views

Both biological and psychological traits have been linked to criminal behavior, but not as causal linkages.

 It is the “multiple factor” approach or the interaction of mental and physical traits with environmental and social factors that either suppress or trigger criminal behavior.

The focus is generally on persistent or chronic offenders.

Biosocial Theories of Delinquency

Focuses on the association between biological makeup, environmental conditions, and antisocial behaviors

There’s evidence that a child’s diet may influence his/her behavior (consider sugar)

Hormonal levels are an explanation of why there are gender differences in delinquency It’s possible that increased levels of testosterone

are responsible for excessive violence among teenage boys

Neurological Dysfunction

Condition in which a child shows a developmentally inappropriate lack of attention and response to impulse

Studies show that arrested children tend to have a higher LD than children in the general population

Learning Disabilities

Teenage Brains

ADHD

Teenage brains make them crime prone

Psychological Theories of Delinquency

Many delinquent youths have unhealthy home lives Psychodynamic Theory

Branch of psychology that holds that the human personality is controlled by the unconscious mental processes – have you ever had a smell or a song that reminds you of something?

Behavioral Theory Argument that personality is learned throughout life

during interaction with others Cognitive Theory

Studies the perception of reality and the mental processes required to understand the world we live in

Critiquing Trait Theory Views

The research methodologies that are employed are invalid and/or poorly designed

Personality and IQ are spread evenly across the social structure

If individual traits were the true cause of delinquency, then it too should be spread evenly across society, but it isn’t.

Trait Theory and Delinquency Prevention

Prevention efforts should be directed at strengthening a youth’s home life and relationships

We should focus on testing and correcting deficiencies with meds or counseling

Individual approaches have been used to prevent adjudicated youths from engaging in further criminal activities

Critics argue that the more we try to help youths, the more likely they will be to see themselves as different or as troublemakers

www.cengage.com/cj/siegel

Larry J. SiegelBrandon C. Welsh

David R. Montague, Lisa Hutchinson & Sharniece R. HughesUniversity of Arkansas at Little Rock

Chapter 4Sociological Views

of Delinquency

Chapter Goals

General Context of Sociological Views of Delinquency Be familiar with the association between social

conditions and crime Discuss the effect of racial disparity on delinquency Describe the principles of social disorganization theory Be familiar with recent developments in strain theory Discuss the concepts of social process and

socialization Discuss the elements of social control theories Explain how the labeling process is related to

delinquent careers

Broader Picture of Youth…

Many troubled youths aren’t able to turn around their lives – they don’t know where to begin and lack the physical and mental resources necessary

Most delinquents are indigent and desperate

Delinquents often live in tough urban environments in families torn apart and in stress

What impact might these facts have on youth?

Social Factors and Delinquency

What are the social factors believed to cause or affect delinquent behaviors? Interpersonal interactions (relationships) Community ecological conditions (environment) Social change Socioeconomic status (poverty)

Minority poverty The consequences of racial disparity and poverty

take a harsh toll on minority youths About 6% of white, 11% of black and 22% of

Hispanics drop out of high school each year There are more blacks in prison than in college in

the US

Social Structure Theories

Oscar Louis coined the phrase “culture of poverty” The view that lower class people form a

separate culture with their own values and norms (smoking dope, living on welfare, and stealing cable are OK)

The impoverished are deprived of a standard of living enjoyed by the other citizens

The theories tie delinquency rates to both socioeconomic conditions (e.g. poverty, neighborhood deterioration) and cultural values

Social Structure Theories, cont.

Social Disorganization Relative Deprivation- condition that exists when people

of wealth and poverty live in close proximity to one another (“They have everything and we have nothing – it’s not fair”)

Community Change – poorer neighborhoods are transient

Community Fear – don’t get involved Poverty Concentration Collective Efficacy- process in which mutual trust and a

willingness to intervene in the supervision of children and help maintain public order create a sense of well-being – it takes a village to raise a child

Gangs - some of the most common reasons for joining a gang -- status and belonging

Social Process Theories: Socialization and Delinquency

Sociologists argue that the root cause of delinquency may be traced to learning delinquent attitudes from peers, experiencing conflict in the home, etc.

Socialization is the process of guiding people into acceptable behavior patterns

Early socialization experiences have a lifelong influence on self-image, values, and behaviors

The 2nd main branch of the social process approach, suggests that the cause of delinquency resides in the strength of the relationships a child forms with conventional individuals and groups

Critical Theory

Society is in a constant state of internal conflict Those in power use the justice system to

maintain their status while keeping others subservient (sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine)

The poor may or may not commit more crimes than the rich, but they are certainly arrested more often (would OJ have been convicted the first time if he wasn’t rich?)

Theory and Delinquency Prevention

Social programs have been designed to reduce/eliminate delinquency

Delinquency can be prevented by strengthening the socialization process (Head Start type programs)

Restorative justice An approach that relies on non-punitive

strategies for delinquency control